Another Match Day Success for TouroCOM Students
Doctors Celebrate Residencies in Sought-After Specialties and Prestigious Hospitals
Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine Harlem and Middletown celebrated another year of a stellar match day success rate. Senior students from both schools matched in various specialties including anesthesiology, diagnostic radiology, vascular surgery, and general surgery. Matching schools and hospitals included John Hopkins, Yale University, and Stony Brook University.
“As in previous years, the TouroCOM Class of 2024 has had a very successful residency match,” said TouroCOM Executive Dean Dr. Kenneth Steier. “Senior students from Harlem and Middletown matched into a diverse number of residencies, including dermatology, surgery, internal medicine, pediatrics, and psychiatry at many of the top hospitals in New York and across the country. We congratulate them on this great success.”
One highlight of the match day success for Mary Dermigny, MHA, Director of Alumni Affairs for TouroCOM Middletown, was the number of students who applied for and received residencies in nearby hospitals.
“Fourteen students are going to Garnet Medical Health Center and Vasser Medical Center nearby; that’s pretty significant and fantastic,” Dermigny said. “One of the reasons TouroCOM chose Middletown was the hope that students would move here in residency and practice in this area. TouroCOM’s mission has always been to serve the underserved, and rural areas are particularly underserved.”
“Match Day is about the students and it’s the most exciting day of their medical career so far,” explained Dr. Barbara Capozzi, CNS, Clinical Dean at TouroCOM Harlem and an Associate Professor at the school. “We have a great group of seniors, and this is their outcome. We’re proud and we’re very happy for them..”
TouroCOM Middletown student Tate Pumphrey matched at his top choice: Yale New Haven Hospital’s radiation oncology. “I was so excited, I almost thought it was fake,” said Pumphrey who did a rotation at the hospital.
Pumphrey traced his interest in radiology to his mother’s battle with cancer. “My mother’s doctors and radiologists were wonderful,” said Pumphrey. “Seeing how they were able to help her using radiation just sparked something in me.”
Untraditional Paths, Traditional Excellence
Several of the matching students took untraditional paths to osteopathic medical school.
Yuli Breier will start her vascular surgery residency at Stony Brook University Hospital next year. An Israeli citizen, Breier moved to the US at 22 to work for the Israeli consulate. After working for five years and earning a bachelor’s from Hunter College, she joined TouroCOM Harlem as part of the 2019 Master of Science Program in Interdisciplinary Studies in Biological and Physical Sciences and matriculated into the school the following year.
“I’m very, very happy with my match,” said Breier who became a new mother during her first year of medical school. “Matching as a DO in vascular surgery is very rare so I’m thrilled. I had a really good experience in TouroCOM. I decided to pursue vascular surgery after a rotation in my fourth year. There’s a lot of balance between endovascular and open procedures, so you’re not doing the same thing every day. You’re also able to do minimally invasive procedures to save people. I liked it as soon as I was exposed to it.”
Kathryn Munson worked as a nurse for twelve years before starting TouroCOM Middletown, including serving a tour of duty in Afghanistan with the US Navy. “I deployed to a British field hospital in Afghanistan’s Helmand Province,” she said. “It was a really incredible experience, but it made me realize I wanted a different role in the healthcare system.”
Munson will begin her anesthesiology residency in John Hopkins next year. “It’s a bit bittersweet,” she said. “My classmates are dear friends and I’ll miss them. I had great advisors in TouroCOM and I’ll miss them as well.”
